Pollies they are, popular they ain’t

Polls can be misleading but since we all like being misled from time to time, this week’s Newspoll was fun. On the one hand,
Kevin Rudd
’s continuing tank job is evident, with his satisfaction level dropping to 48 per cent and dissatisfaction rising to 41 per cent.

He’s been having a rough time of it lately, what with roofs exploding and a new hospital scheme that’s either the same as the old hospital scheme with a different money trail or something else nobody’s figured out.

But for all the attention Kevin’s dive has received, let’s not forget the fact that
Tony Abbott
isn’t exactly topping the charts.

His performance rating was only 47 per cent, which probably wasn’t helped by his idea, not particularly well explained, of beating Kevin’s parental leave program by a few weeks and more money.

I am opposed to this on one general principle: I didn’t get it.

(OK, that’s selfish because my parents never had two cars, a stainless-steel barbecue or listened to the Brooklyn Funk Essentials after midnight when they were my age, but that was their problem).

The fun part kicks in when you realise that, at least for the time being, we don’t like either of these two guys very much. We’ve looked, read and listened and we remain underwhelmed. Maybe it’s a sign of the times. Whitney Houston can’t carry a tune (that’s if you ever liked her when she could).

The US President insists on a national health plan that’s short on the “plan" angle. The Oscars were more boring than usual (which is what you’d expect when one of the contenders for best picture is a cartoon). But one of these guys we don’t like very much will be the next prime minister. OK, 47 or 48 per cent isn’t bad but it’s not a ringing endorsement either. Rudd’s been heading down and until now Abbott’s been heading up. The past week or so, they’ve been doing all they can to freeze it right where it is. Kevin continued to alienate his own party with his dis job on Kristina Keneally and treating the Henry report as if it were the Watergate tapes. By the time that thing ever gets released, they’re going to have to keep it under glass in a museum.

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Abbott treads a thin line between being likeable and being scary. I personally like the scary side but, then again, I don’t want to be prime minister. The other night, Four Corners gave him its standard Wikipedia treatment (everything you already knew but can’t remember where you heard it) with the result being, well, not much.

The question is, has Tony stalled? While the coalition has gained momentum, that could be because its two previous leaders never had any. The neat thing about Tony is he can say nothing and cause trouble.

So maybe they’ve both stalled. But we’re running out of time. This is an election year. Half the Labor caucus hates Kevin’s guts but knows he’s the one who put them back in business. Tony heads a coalition that’s only held together by the fact that there’s nothing else to do. So if we go to Newspoll’s two other mainstays, preferred prime minister and two-party preferred basis, it goes to the ALP. Rudd has a 25-point advantage over Abbott and Labor has the latter by 52 to 48 per cent.

That’s if it stays that way and neither leader shoots the pooch in the meantime, something they’re both capable of. Forgetting Kevin’s doofus school improvement program and insulation screw-up, he’s still got a few public works programs that could buy votes. And with that parental leave idea, Tony’s shown he likes a good joke too.

There’s no telling what these two could get up to once there’s a more firm idea of when the election will be. There’s going to be so much pork flying around you’ll think you’re at a roast but the thing to remember is we’re the ones who will be paying for the party. It’s not as though Kevin or Tony are going to go broke over it.